1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the field of cheese products and methods for making the same.
2. Related Art
Cream cheese and similar products are ubiquitous in modern diets. These cheese products generally have a creamy texture and a bland, unremarkable flavor. Spreadability makes cream cheese convenient to use, which is the primary basis for its choice by consumers over other firmer cheeses and the reason for its high volume consumption as a topping, for example on breads including bagels. In the classic method for making cream cheese, a pasteurized milkfat fluid such as cream, having a butterfat concentration generally within a range of between about 34.5% by weight and 52% by weight, is the primary raw material. This milkfat fluid is subjected to thorough digestion by lactic acid-producing bacteria, homogenized, and clotted by enzymes or direct acidification. The milkfat fluid is thus transformed into a solid phase referred to as the curd, and a liquid phase referred to as the whey. Most of the butterfat from the milkfat fluid is retained in the curd; and significant protein content, having substantial nutritional value and much of the appealing potential flavor in the milkfat fluid, remains in the whey. The curd is then processed into the cream cheese product, and the whey is discarded, along with its nutrients and flavor. As a result, cream cheese typically has a bland, dull, virtually unnoticeable taste. The retention of some of the liquid whey in the curd is a problem in itself, as the liquid gradually leaks out of the curd in an unappealing and ongoing separation that is called syneresis. In addition, large scale cream cheese production generates corresponding quantities of often unusable whey, which thus becomes a waste expense and environmental detraction unless some other use can be found for it. Syneresis can similarly be a problem in many other cheese products.
The minimum fat content for cream cheese is 33% by weight. It is a pervasive goal in the human diet to consume less fat; and the relatively high butterfat content of a typical cream cheese is not helpful in achieving this goal. Cream cheese may also include high concentrations of cholesterol and sodium. High fat concentrations are also a problem in many other cheese products.
The maximum fat content for low-fat cream cheese is 17.5% by weight. Countless attempts have been made to make low-fat cream cheese products, but the resulting cheese products have typically failed due to unacceptable taste and poor texture. As an example, some so-called low-fat cream cheese products have exhibited a bitter aftertaste, a glossy appearance, and a somewhat dry, plastic texture. Hence, despite the broad popularity of cream cheese, its use typically entails consumer acceptance of a minimum butterfat content of 33% by weight, along with high concentrations of cholesterol and sodium, and a bland, unremarkable taste.
Yogurt, which is another highly prevalent milk-derived product, has an entirely different consistency than cream cheese, as well as a fundamentally different flavor. In illustration, yogurt is considered to be a food, whereas cream cheese is considered to be a condiment. For example, cream cheese is a popular topping for bread products such as bagels, but yogurt is not. On the other hand, yogurt has a robust, appealing flavor. Yogurt also typically has lower concentrations of butterfat, cholesterol and sodium than cream cheese as well as a higher concentration of protein.
A health-conscious consumer might well make the simple observation that nonfat yogurt has a robust, appealing flavor, find the concept of combining yogurt and cream cheese to be appealing, and thus attempt to combine these products together. However, due to the disparate properties of cream cheese and yogurt, including for example their differing consistencies, water content, and food chemistries, combining cream cheese and yogurt in mutually appreciable proportions may only generate a runny mess or an unstable composition exhibiting marked syneresis over a reasonable storage period. A consumer might instead attempt to drain the liquid from the solid phase of the yogurt before combining in the cream cheese, thereby discarding whey including protein from the yogurt. Similar problems can be expected where other types of cheeses are substituted for cream cheese, if an attempt is made to combine such cheeses with yogurt.
In addition to cream cheese, many other currently-available cheese-like dairy products also lack the health benefits of yogurt. For example, butter products in the form of either spreads or bricks often have high butterfat concentrations. Further for example, margarine products, which are designed to substitute for butter, often have high edible oil concentrations. Neither of these product classes may typically include a substantial concentration of protein. As a further example, butter-like products including both butterfat and an edible oil may have a high overall fat concentration.
Accordingly there is a continuing need for low-fat cheese products including a milkfat fluid, having the appealing texture and flavor of high-milkfat cheeses.